Kerala based PFI Group triggered hate SMS leading to North East Exodus

Apart from Pakistan, Some Kerala based group’s name has emerged in the spread of Hate Rumours leading to exodus of North East people from different parts of Country.

Popular Front of India (PFI) is Kerala based organization and runs wot the support of Bangladesh-based Harkat-ul-Jehad al Islami (HuJI). Cyber Security Experts have been successful in detecting forwarding of bulk messages going viral from Bangladesh groups and PFI activists.

It is usually difficult to trace the route of these provocative text messages because hackers normally use third-party servers. They also bounce the SMSs through several countries to avoid detection.

Some of the messages hold out communal threats of retribution for alleged atrocities on Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, a community in the Arakan state linked with Bangladesh, traditionally backed by Islamist and jihadist groups, such as the HuJI.

The PFI, under focus with the HuJI, is largely a Kerala-based outfit, and had a role in chopping off the hand of a professor for alleged blasphemy in 2010. It was formed on December 9, 2006, after merging the Karnataka Forum of Dignity and Tamil Nadu-based Manitha Neethi Pasarai.

Inheriting the operational core of the banned Students Islamic Movement of India, the PFI has a cadre of 80,000 radicals, spread over Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh West Bengal and Manipur.

Officials said more than 60 per cent of the offending contents were uploaded abroad — mostly in Pakistan — while remaining in India.

The government ordered blocking of 65 new webpages today, taking the number to 310, names of two Pakistani political parties — Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf — and a private TV channel of that country have surfaced in some of the images and videos which were uploaded in different webpages with the aim of inciting Muslims in India leading to the mass exodus of people of the Northeastern region from places lKarnataka, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.

Ministry officials said so far 207 webpages have been blocked by the government agencies after orders were issued to block 310 as technical investigation found that all offensive images and videos were uploaded in them.

Of the 310 webpages, 93 webpages are expected to be blocked within a day or two while experts are examining the contents of remaining ten webpages.

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